The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
}} | Length = 41:51 | Label = | Producer = Norman Smith | This album = The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967) | Next album = A Saucerful of Secrets (1968) | Misc = }} The Piper at the Gates of Dawn is the debut studio album by English rock band Pink Floyd, and the only one made under founding member Syd Barrett's leadership. The album, named after the title of chapter seven of Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in the Willows and featuring a kaleidoscopic cover photo of the band taken by Vic Singh, was recorded from February to May 1967 and released on 5 August 1967. It was produced by Beatles engineer Norman Smith and released in 1967 by EMI Columbia in the United Kingdom and Tower in the United States, in August and October respectively. The release of the album in the US was timed with the band's tour of the US. In the UK, no singles were released from the album, but in the US "Flaming" was offered as a single. The US version of the album has a rearranged track list, and contains the UK non-album single, "See Emily Play". Two of the album's songs, "Astronomy Domine" and "Interstellar Overdrive", became long-term mainstays of the band's live setlist, while other songs were performed live only a handful of times. Since its release, the album has been hailed as one of the best psychedelic rock albums. In 1973, it was packaged with the band's second album, A Saucerful of Secrets, and released as A Nice Pair to introduce new fans to the band's early work after the success of The Dark Side of the Moon. Special limited editions of The Piper at the Gates of Dawn were issued to mark its thirtieth and fortieth anniversaries in 1997 and 2007, respectively, with the latter release containing bonus tracks. In 2012, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn was voted 347th on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Background Architecture students Roger Waters, Nick Mason and Richard Wright and art student Syd Barrett had performed under various group names since 1962, and began touring as "The Pink Floyd Sound" in 1965. They turned professional on 1 February 1967 when they signed with EMI, with an advance fee of £5,000. Their first single, a song about a kleptomaniac transvestite titled "Arnold Layne", was released on 11 March to mild controversy, as Radio London refused to air it.Cavanagh 2003, p. 19 About three weeks later the band were introduced to the mainstream media. EMI's press release claimed that the band were "musical spokesmen for a new movement which involves experimentation in all the arts", but EMI attempted to put some distance between them and the underground scene from which the band originated by stating that "the Pink Floyd does not know what people mean by psychedelic pop and are not trying to create hallucinatory effects on their audiences."Schaffner 2005, p. 57 The band returned to Sound Techniques studio to record their next single, "See Emily Play", on 18 May.Schaffner 2005, p. 66Chapman 2010, p. 171 The single was released almost a month later, on 16 June, and reached number six in the charts.Blake 2008, p. 88–89 Pink Floyd picked up a tabloid reputation for making music for LSD users. The popular broadsheet News of the World printed a story nine days before the album's recording sessions began, saying that "The Pink Floyd group specialise in 'psychedelic music', which is designed to illustrate LSD experiences."Cavanagh 2003, p. 42 Contrary to this image, only Barrett was known to be taking LSD; authors Ray B. Browne and Pat Browne contend that he was the "only real drug user in the band". Recording The band's record deal was relatively poor for the time: a £5,000 advance over five years, low royalties and no free studio time. However, it did include album development and EMI, unsure of exactly what kind of band they had signed, gave them free rein to record whatever they wanted.Povey 2007, pp. 37–39 They were obliged to record their first album at EMI's Abbey Road Studios in London,Schaffner 2005, p. 55 overseen by producer Norman Smith,Chapman 2010, pp. 169–170 a central figure in Pink Floyd's negotiations with EMI. Balance engineer Pete Bown, who had mentored Smith, helped ensure that the album had a unique sound, through his experimentation with equipment and recording techniques. Bown, assisted by studio manager David Harris, set up microphones an hour before the sessions began. Bown's microphone choices were mostly different from those used by Smith to record the Beatles' EMI sessions.Palacios 2010, p. 182 Because of Barrett's quiet voice, he was placed in a vocal isolation booth to sing his parts. Automatic double tracking (ADT) was used to add layers of echo to the vocals and to some instruments.Palacios 2010, p. 183 The album featured an unusually heavy use of echo and reverberation to give it its own unique sound. Much of the reverberation effect came from a set of Elektro-Mess-Technik plate reverberators – customised EMT 140s containing thin metal plates under tension – and the studio's tiled echo chamber built in 1931. The album is made up of two different classes of songs: lengthy improvisations from the band's live performances and shorter songs that Barrett had written.Chapman 2010, p. 142 Barrett's LSD intake escalated part-way through the album's recording sessions. Although in his 2005 autobiography Mason recalled the sessions as relatively trouble-free, Smith disagreed and claimed that Barrett was unresponsive to his suggestions and constructive criticism.Mason 2011, pp. 92–93Palacios 2010, pp. 183–184 In an attempt to build a relationship with the band, Smith played jazz on the piano while the band joined in. These jam sessions worked well with Waters, who was apparently helpful, and Wright, who was "laid-back". Smith's attempts to connect with Barrett were less productive: "With Syd, I eventually realised I was wasting my time."Blake 2008, p. 77 Smith later admitted that his traditional ideas of music were somewhat at odds with the psychedelic background from which Pink Floyd had come. Nevertheless, he managed to "discourage the live ramble", as band manager Peter Jenner called it, guiding the band toward producing songs with a more manageable length.Blake 2008, pp. 84–85 Barrett would end up writing eight of the album's songs and contributing to two instrumentals credited to the whole band, with Waters creating the sole remaining composition "Take Up Thy Stethoscope and Walk". Mason recalled how the album "was recorded in what one might call the old-fashioned way: rather quickly. As time went by we started spending longer and longer." Recording started on 21 February with six takesPalacios 2010, p. 185 of "Matilda Mother", then called "Matilda's Mother".Chapman 2010, p. 149 The following week, on the 27th,Palacios 2010, p. 187 the band recorded five takes of "Interstellar Overdrive", Palacios 2010, p. 188|group="nb"}} and "Chapter 24".Chapman 2010, p. 151 On 16 March, the band had another go at recording "Interstellar Overdrive", in an attempt to create a shorter version,Palacios 2010, p. 195 and "Flaming" (originally titled "Snowing"), which was recorded in a single takeChapman 2010, p. 152 with one vocal overdub.Palacios 2010, p. 196 On 19 March, six takes of "The Gnome" were recorded.Chapman 2010, p. 153 The following day, the band recorded Waters' "Take Up Thy Stethoscope and Walk".Palacios 2010, p. 198 On 21 March, the band were invited to watch the Beatles record "Lovely Rita".Manning 2006, p. 36Palacios 2010, pp. 198–199 The following day, they recorded "The Scarecrow" in one take.Chapman 2010, p. 154Palacios 2010, p. 199 The next three tracks - "Astronomy Domine", "Interstellar Overdrive" and "Pow R. Toc H." – were worked on extensively between 21 March and 12 April,Palacios 2010, pp. 198, 206 having originally been lengthy instrumentals. Between 12 and 18 April,Chapman 2010, p. 158 the band recorded "Percy the Rat Catcher" and a currently unreleased track called "She Was a Millionaire".Palacios 2010, p. 209Palacios 2010, p. 371 "Percy the Rat Catcher" received overdubs across five studio sessions and then was mixed in late June, eventually being given the name "Lucifer Sam".Cavanagh 2003, p. 39 Songwriting for the majority of the album is credited solely to Barrett, with tracks such as "Bike" having been written in late 1966 before the album was started.Manning 2006, p. 29Chapman 2010, p. 162 "Bike" was recorded on 21 May 1967 and originally entitled "The Bike Song". By June, Barrett's increasing LSD use during the recording project left him looking visibly debilitated. Release In June 1967 before the album was released, the single "See Emily Play" was sold as a 7-inch 45 rpm record, with "The Scarecrow" on the B-side, listed as "Scarecrow". The full album was released on 5 August 1967, including "The Scarecrow". The album contains whimsical lyrics about space, scarecrows, gnomes, bicycles and fairy tales, along with psychedelic instrumental music. Pink Floyd continued to perform at the UFO Club, drawing huge crowds, but Barrett's deterioration caused them serious concern. The band initially hoped that his erratic behaviour was a phase that would pass, but others, including manager Peter Jenner and his secretary June Child, were more realistic: To the band's consternation, they were forced to cancel their appearance at the prestigious National Jazz and Blues Festival, informing the music press that Barrett was suffering from nervous exhaustion. Jenner and Waters arranged for Barrett to see a psychiatrist – a meeting he did not attend. He was sent to relax in the sun on the Spanish island of Formentera with Waters and Sam Hutt (a doctor well-established in the underground music scene), but this led to no visible improvement.Mason 2011, pp. 95–105Blake 2008, p. 94Schaffner 2005, pp. 88–90Schaffner 2005, pp. 91–92 The original UK LP (with a monaural mix) Original UK mono LP|group="nb"}} was released on 5 August 1967, and one month later it was released in stereophonic mix. Original UK stereo LP|group="nb"}} It reached number six on the UK charts.Povey 2007, p. 342Chapman 2010, p. 172 The Canadian LP Original Canadian stereo LP|group="nb"}} had the same title and track listing as the UK version. The original US album appeared on the Tower division of Capitol on 26 October 1967. This version Original US mono LP|group="nb"}} Original US stereo LP|group="nb"}} was officially titled simply Pink Floyd, though the original album title did appear on the back cover as on the UK issue, and Dick Clark referred to the record by its original title when the group appeared on his American Bandstand television program on 18 November 1967. The US album featured an abbreviated track listing,Cavanagh 2003, pp. 54–55 and reached number 131 on the Billboard charts. The UK single, "See Emily Play", was substituted for "Astronomy Domine", "Flaming" and "Bike". Released in time for the band's US tour, "Flaming" was released as a single, backed with "The Gnome".Cavanagh 2003, p. 55 The Tower issue of the album also faded out "Interstellar Overdrive" and broke up the segue into "The Gnome" to fit the re-sequencing of the songs. Later US issues on compact disc had the same title and track list as the UK version. The album was certified Gold in the US on 11 March 1994. , as depicted in the book The Wind in the Willows.]] About being handled on Tower Records, Jenner commented that: "In terms of the U.K. and Europe it was always fine. America was always difficult. Capitol couldn't see it. You know, 'What is this latest bit of rubbish from England? Oh Christ, it'll give us more grief, so we'll put it out on Tower Records', which was a subsidiary of Capitol Records ... It was a very cheapskate operation and it was the beginning of endless problems The Floyd had with Capitol. It started off bad and went on being bad."Cavanagh 2003, pp. 55–56 Packaging Up-and-coming society photographer Vic Singh was hired to photograph the band for the album cover. Singh shared a studio with photographer David Bailey, and he was friends with Beatles guitarist George Harrison. Singh asked Jenner and King to dress the band in the brightest clothes they could find. Vic Singh then shot them with a prism lens that Harrison had given him. The cover was meant to resemble an LSD trip, a style that was favoured at the time. Barrett came up with the album title The Piper at the Gates of Dawn; the album was originally titled Projection up to as late as July 1967.Chapman 2010, pp. 148–149 The title was taken from that of chapter seven of Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in the Willows''Cavanagh 2003, pp. 2–3 which contains a visionary encounter with the god Pan, who plays his pan pipe at dawn.Chapman 2010, p. 148 It was one of Barrett's favourite books, and he often gave friends the impression that he was the embodiment of Pan. |group="nb"}} The moniker was later used in the song "Shine On You Crazy Diamond", in which Barrett is called "you Piper". The cover for the album was one of several Pink Floyd album covers used on a series of Royal Mail stamps issued in May 2016 to commemorate 50 years of Pink Floyd. Reception | rev2 = AllMusic | rev2score = | rev3 = The Daily Telegraph | rev3Score = |rev4 = MusicHound |rev4score = 3.5/5 | rev5 = NME | rev5score = 9/10 | rev6 = Paste | rev6score = 9.5/10 | rev7 = Pitchfork | rev7score = 9.4/10 | rev8 = Q | rev8score = |rev9 = The Rolling Stone Album Guide |rev9score = }} At the time of release, the album was received positively, and the record is now recognised as one of the seminal psychedelic rock albums of the 1960s. In 1967, both Record Mirror and NME gave the album four stars out of five. Record Mirror commented that "the psychedelic image of the group really comes to life on this LP, which is a fine showcase for both their talent and the recording technique. Plenty of mindblowing sound." Cash Box called it "a particularly striking collection of driving, up-to-date rock ventures".Povey 2007, p. 66 Paul McCartney and Pink Floyd's past producer Joe Boyd both rated the album highly. Some voiced the opinion of the underground fans, by suggesting that the album did not reflect the band's live performances. In recent years, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn has gained even more recognition. The album is hailed not only as a psychedelic masterpiece but LSD is named as a direct influence. In 1999 Rolling Stone magazine gave the album 4.5 stars out of 5, calling it "the golden achievement of Syd Barrett". ''Q'' magazine described the album as "indispensable" and included it in their list of the best psychedelic albums ever. It was also ranked 40th in ''Mojo'' magazine's "The 50 Most Out There Albums of All Time" list. In 2000 Q'' magazine placed ''The Piper at the Gates of Dawn at number 55 in its list of the 100 greatest British albums ever. In 2012, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn was voted 347th on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums ever. James E. Perone says that Piper became known as a concept album in later years, because listeners wanted to play it all the way through rather than pick out a favourite song. While Beatles biographer Philip Norman agrees that Piper is a concept album, other authors contend that Pink Floyd did not start making concept albums until 1973's The Dark Side of the Moon. Author George Reisch called Pink Floyd the "undisputed" kings of the concept album, but only starting from Dark Side.Reisch 2007, p. 144 In July 2006, Billboard described The Piper at the Gates of Dawn as "one of the best psychedelic rock albums ever, driven by Barrett's oddball narratives and the band's skill with both long jams and perfect pop nuggets". Reissues The Piper at the Gates of Dawn was reissued in the UK in 1979 as a stereo vinyl album, and on CD in the UK and US in 1985. A digitally remastered stereo CD, with new artwork, was released in the US in 1994, and in 1997 limited edition 30th anniversary mono editions were released in the UK, on CD and vinyl. These limited editions were in a hefty digipak with 3-D box art for continental Europe and the world outside the United States. This mono CD included a slightly edited version of "Flaming". A six-track bonus CD, 1967: The First Three Singles, was given away alongside the 1997 30th-anniversary edition of the album. In 1973, the album, along with A Saucerful of Secrets, was released as a two-disc set on Capitol/EMI's Harvest Records label, titled A Nice Pair Original A Nice Pair UK LP|group="nb"}} Original A Nice Pair US LP|group="nb"}} to introduce fans to the band's early work after the success of The Dark Side of the Moon. (On the American version of that compilation, the original four-minute studio version of "Astronomy Domine" was replaced with the eight-minute live version found on Ummagumma.) The American edition of A Nice Pair also failed to properly restore the segue between "Interstellar Overdrive" and "The Gnome". For the 40th anniversary, a two-disc edition 40th anniversary Europe two-CD|group="nb"}} was released on 4 September 2007, and a three-disc set 40th anniversary Europe three-CD|group="nb"}} was released on 11 September 2007. The packaging – designed by Storm Thorgerson – resembles a cloth-covered book, along with a twelve-page reproduction of a Syd Barrett notebook. Discs one and two contain the full album in its original mono mix (disc one), as well as the alternative stereo version (disc two). Both have been newly remastered by James Guthrie. The third disc includes several Piper-era outtakes from the Abbey Road vaults, along with the band's first three mono singles. Unreleased material includes an alternative, shorter take of "Interstellar Overdrive" that was previously thought lost, the pre-overdubbed abridged mix of "Interstellar Overdrive" previously only available on an EP in France, an alternative mix of "Matilda Mother" as it appeared early in the sessions and also the 1967 stereo mix of "Apples and Oranges", which features extra untrimmed material at the beginning and end. Piper was remastered and re-released on 26 September 2011 as part of the Why Pink Floyd...? reissue campaign. It is available in this format as either a stand-alone album, 2011 remaster Europe CD|group="nb"}} 2011 remaster US CD|group="nb"}} or as part of the Why Pink Floyd ... ? Discovery box set, Discovery Europe edition|group="nb"}} Discovery US edition|group="nb"}} along with the 13 other studio albums and a new colour booklet. Then the album was re-released on the band's own Pink Floyd Records label in 3 June 2016 for the world outside Europe. Live performances Although there was never an official tour of the album, the band gigged in the UK to promote the album. They played dates in Ireland and Scandinavia, and in late October the band was to embark on their first tour of the United States. It was unsuccessful, mainly because of the mental breakdown of Barrett. In his capacity as tour manager Andrew King travelled to New York to begin preparations, but he ran into serious problems. Visas had not arrived, prompting the cancellation of the first six dates. The band finally flew across the Atlantic on 1 November, but work permits were not yet obtained, so they settled into a hotel in Sausalito, California, just north of San Francisco.Povey 2007, pp. 4–5 After a number of cancellations, the first US performance was given 4 November at Winterland Ballroom, following Janis Joplin fronting Big Brother and the Holding Company. For the American tour, many numbers such as "Flaming" and "The Gnome" were dropped, while others such as "Astronomy Domine" and "Interstellar Overdrive" remained, and were central to the band's setlist during this period, often performed as encores until around 1971. "Astronomy Domine" was later included on the live disc of Ummagumma,Schaffner 2005, p. 156 and adopted by the post-Waters Pink Floyd during the 1994 Division Bell tour, with a version included on the 1995 live album Pulse. David Gilmour, though not a member of Pink Floyd at the time the song was originally recorded, resurrected "Astronomy Domine" for his On an Island and Rattle That Lock tours. Communication between company and band was almost non-existent, and Pink Floyd's relationship with Tower and Capitol was therefore poor. Barrett's mental condition mirrored the problems that King encountered; when the band performed at Winterland, he detuned his guitar during "Interstellar Overdrive" until the strings fell off. His odd behaviour grew worse in subsequent performances, and during a television recording for The Pat Boone Show he confounded the director by lip-syncing "Apples and Oranges" perfectly during the rehearsal, and then standing motionless during the take. King quickly curtailed the band's US visit, sending them home on the next flight. Shortly after their return from the US, beginning 14 November, the band supported Jimi Hendrix on a tour of England, but on one occasion Barrett failed to turn up and they were forced to replace him with singer/guitarist David O'List borrowed from the opening band the Nice. Barrett's depression worsened the longer the tour continued.Schaffner 2005, p. 94 Longtime Pink Floyd psychedelic lighting designer Peter Wynne-Willson left at the end of the Hendrix tour, though he sympathised with Barrett, whose position as frontman was increasingly insecure. Wynne-Willson, who had worked for a percentage, was replaced by his assistant John Marsh who collected a lesser wage.Blake 2008, p. 102 Pink Floyd released "Apples and Oranges" (recorded prior to the US tour on 26 and 27 October),Chapman 2010, p. 189 but for the rest of the band Barrett's condition had reached a crisis point, and they responded by adding David Gilmour to their line-up, initially to cover for Syd's lapses during live performances. Tracks 8–11 on the UK album edition were played the least during live performances.Chapman 2010, p. 185 The success of "See Emily Play" and "Arnold Layne" meant that the band were forced to perform some of their singles for a limited period in 1967, but they were eventually dropped after Barrett left the band. "Flaming" and "Pow R. Toc H." were also played regularly by the post-Barrett Pink Floyd in 1968, even though these songs were in complete contrast to the band's other works at this time. Some of the songs from Piper would be reworked and rearranged for The Man and The Journey live show in 1969 ("The Pink Jungle" was taken from "Pow R. Toc H.", and part of "Interstellar Overdrive" was used for "The Labyrinths of Auximines"). Beginning in September 1967, the band played several new compositions. These included "One in a Million", "Scream Thy Last Scream", "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun" and "Reaction in G", the last of which was a song created by the band in response to crowds asking for their hit singles "See Emily Play" and "Arnold Layne".Chapman 2010, pp. 192–193 Barrett resurrected the track Lucifer Sam with his short-lived 1972 band Stars Track listing All songs written and composed by Syd Barrett, except where noted. UK release US release 40th anniversary edition Personnel Pink Floyd * Syd Barrett – lead guitar, vocals * Roger Waters – bass guitar, vocals * Richard Wright – Farfisa Combo Compact organ, piano, celesta (uncredited), vocals (uncredited) * Nick Mason – drums, percussion Production * Syd Barrett – rear cover design * Peter Bown – engineering * Peter Jenner – intro vocalisations on "Astronomy Domine" (uncredited)Palacios 2010, pp. 206–207 * Vic Singh – front cover photography * Norman Smith – production, vocal and instrumental arrangements, drum roll on "Interstellar Overdrive"Chapman 2010, p. 170 Charts and certifications Charts Certifications References Footnotes Citations External links * Category:1967 debut albums Category:1967 albums Category:Pink Floyd albums Category:Albums produced by Norman Smith (record producer) Category:Albums recorded at Abbey Road Studios Category:EMI Columbia Records albums Category:EMI Records albums Category:English-language albums Category:Tower Records albums Category:Counterculture of the 1960s